Cutting Weight for Same Day Amatuer Weigh in

Hello,

So I'm wondering if anyone has any advice/input they are willing to share regarding techniques/tips/things to look out for when cutting weight for a same-day weigh in? Assuming 2-3 hours to re-hydrate prior to a fight. I understand it is a subject of contention among the community but with the "is it a good idea?" question aside - what are some tips to be successful in the process?

I am interested as I plan on doing this myself but have not yet attempted to get down to the desired weight. I plan on fighting in a few months and would like to do a 'trial' run of the weight cut to see if it's feasible and set my mind at ease. I am 6'3" and my average weight is 160lbs. I would like to fight in the 152lb class. The lowest number I have ever seen on the scale is 156 after an intense cardio session. I'm not sure of my exact body fat percentage but I have to imagine it's sub 12%.

Knowing that I have several months to lose the weight, maybe it's just a matter of tweaking my diet and slowly losing ~6lbs so I only have to cut 2lbs of water weight. Really just interested in hearing other peoples success and horror stories.

Here's a bit of info about my current diet and training routine:

DIET
Essentially paleo with the exception that I eat a Cliff Energy Bar (heavy carbs) prior to my workout every day.

Breakfast - Large kale shake (Kale/carrot/celery/lowfat yogurt/15g hemp protein powder/coconut oil/spirulina/bananna/berries/ground flax seed/orange juice base)
Lunch - ~1.5lb salad (Spinach/chicken/2 eggs/bacon bits/zucchini/eggplant/avocado/onion/broccoli)
Pre-workout - 1 Cliff Energy Bar
Dinner- Chicken - usually a half or a whole rotisserie chicken.
Night Snack - Blueberries or grapes​

"Cheat" day - I think this is probably my biggest, most obvious bottle neck at this point. Once a week I have a day (Saturday) where I do not commit to the diet listed above. I borrowed this concept from Tim Ferris' 4 Hour Body book. The logic of the cheat day is two fold - it helps maintain resolve the other 6 days because there's a 'light at the end of the tunnel' - you know a reward is coming. Also, it's meant to spike your metabolism because all of a sudden your body is getting a ton of calories when it's used to receiving a specific amount. I think at this stage, where I've already gotten rid of the 'easy' weight, I have to stop the cheat days all together in order to get down to my target.

Do others have cheat days?

TRAINING:
6 days a week - 1 day off
Typically do shadow/mitt work/bag work/floor drills (burpees/whatnot)/finish with 20 minute run then abs​

Thanks much.

 

Agreed - I've done away with the cheat day entirely and decided I will do a cheat meal every other week. If that doesn't yield desired results I will cut it out entirely.

I'm 27.

 

I understand the concern but on the surface 2-3 pounds seems reasonable and safe to cut for same-day weigh-in. I've read that the body is able to absorb 1 to 1.5lbs of liquid per hour. Again, seems this way on the surface but that's why I was hoping to glean some more information from those that have been successful in putting it into practice.

Thanks.

 

Precisely! Thanks for sharing your experience.

Mini-update - 7 days since initial post... I removed the 'cheat day' from my diet and switched to a cheat MEAL as discussed and also subbed out chicken in lunch meal for tuna. So far so good. Last night after a long cardio session (I pulled my right lat so can't do much punching with my right at the moment) I was down to 156 - a new low! This was after eating everything indicated in my initial post. As suspected, I think the entire cheat day was killing progress of losing this last bit of a weight.

After eating dinner (half chicken) and drinking several liters of water I woke up this morning at 157 on the nose - so I think I'm in good shape to make the 152 division with just a little more effort and sweating out the final few pounds. I have a fight (my first amateur bout) scheduled for the end of October so still have 2.5 months to tighten up the rest of the diet but it's looking good. :bbb

 

Just wanted to provide an update on this thread as I am scheduled to have my first amatuer fight on Friday.

Since my last post I have stuck with pretty much the same diet but subbed out the breakfast kale shakes with low-fat yogurt/chia seeds(fiber)/almonds for breakfast - or a cliff energy bar if I train in the morning. I also started using a NON STIMULANT fat burner which is essentially just potassium, green tea extract and garlic extract with meals and before bed. Obviously can't confirm whether or not the supplement increased weight loss but I've been getting the results I'm after so I stuck with it.

I also added much more outdoor running to my regimen and split it up from my regular gym training. That is, I'll run for 3 miles @ a pace of 7.5 mins a mile in the morning and then do my mittwork/bagwork/conditioning training in the evening. I believe the roadwork has been a big factor in shaving off the excess pounds.

I now wake up in the mornings around 154-156 depending on my meal from the night before. After a very intense sparring session (so when I was dehydrated) the lowest value I saw on the scale was 150.5lbs - well under the 152lb cap. Typically it lands in the ~151 area after a workout.

My fight is now 3.5 days away and I woke up at 156 pounds this morning eating my regular meals, so I feel like I'm going to be in good shape to make weight on Friday. My plan is to stop eating heavy foods and things that sit in my bowels starting tomorrow. So I'll be eating less and the food I eat will be lighter weight and more likely to run through my system quickly - things like soup, smoothies and meatless salads.

It has taken quite a bit of hard work to get to this stage and I'm pretty happy to have reached my weight goal and I feel confident going into this first fight.

Wish me luck, fellas!:thumbsup

 

Thanks for the well wishes.

Speechless - I woke up this morning at 149.2lbs (!) so I have been staying well hydrated and ate a Cliff Energy bar for breakfast. Feelin good. I will certainly report back.

 

Welp... the dude I was meant to fight was a no-show so I didn't end up fighting. Found out he wasn't coming after weighing in and getting checked by doctor - so literally 30 mins before we were scheduled to fight. Buuuut what can ya do?

Looking on the bright side I've confirmed I can get to fight weight relatively easily, my scale is accurate and now I know how the pre-fight process works! I hope to get another club show fight next month and will report back.